GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE HEALTH IMPLICATIONS OF SPOUSAL LOSS IN INDIA: EVIDENCE FROM A LONGITUDINAL SURVEY. (11th November 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lin, Z; Chen, F
• Is Part Of: Innovation in aging. Volume 2(2018)Supplement 1
• Page Start: 659
• Page End: 659
• Publication Date: 2018-11-11
• Subjects: Aging -- Periodicals; Gerontology -- Periodicals; 612.67
• DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.2458
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2399-5300

Abstract

Abstract: It has long been hypothesized that men and women experience bereavement in different ways, but evidence for gender differences in its health consequences has been inconsistent and varied by contexts. This study examines the health implications of widowhood for older men and women in India, where an oppressive patriarchal family system adds another layer of complexity to gendered mechanisms in coping with widowhood. We highlight the roles of economic resources, family ties and other household and community based social capital in shaping gendered health consequences of spousal loss. This study uses data from the Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS), a nationally representative longitudinal dataset (2004–2005, and 2011–2012). We limit our sample to older adults who were aged 60 or older at the first wave and also completed the second wave of survey (N = 10, 228). We model minor illnesses, major chronic diseases, and difficulties with activities of daily living (ADL), using transition to widowhood as a key predictor. Results show that older women who experienced widowhood between two waves of surveys had higher risks of some chronic diseases and problems with ADL, compared with those remained married. Older women who were widowed at both waves also had higher risks for ADL problems than those who stayed married. We found no detrimental health effects for post-widowhood men. We expect gender disparities in economic resources as well as household and community based social capital account for or mitigate differential health consequences of spousal loss by gender in India.